CDC called out for sexual-orientation discrimination

A team of legal experts at the United States Justice Foundation is calling on the U.S. government to quit discriminating based on sexual orientation.

They have sent a letter to Kevin Fenton of the National Center for HIV/AIDS in the Department of Health and Human Services’ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It was written on behalf of PFOX, Parents and Friends of ExGays and Gays, which pointedly noted that the groups and resources cited by the federal government fall short of a scientific standard.

The letter explains that the CDC Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Health Youth Sources website links to homosexual activist organizations and homosexual resources. It also includes links to sites that “warn others against the use of therapy for diminishing unwanted same-sex attractions.”

For example, it links to the GSANetwork, which is described as “empowering youth activists to fight homophobia and transphobia in schools” as well as “campaigns to …. empower youth activists to create changes that will transform schools.”

“The website also contains links to anti-heterosexual publications and organizations, such as PFLAG, which openly denigrates former homosexuals, and the infamous anti-ex-gay publication ‘Just the Facts,’ which advocates against Christian ex-gay ministries and lists only those religious organizations that affirm homosexual behavior,” the letter says.

“Why is the federal government spreading intolerance against the ex-gay community and Christians who support the religious testimony of former homosexuals?” the letter asks. “The promotion of these negative anti-heterosexual comments spreads hate towards the ex-gay community. Is the federal government singling out a certain class of people to denigrate?”

The letter also takes issue with the government’s links to the Southern Poverty Law Center, “which creates unsafe communities by promoting intolerance against the ex-gay community and actively targeting Christian organizations who disagree with their political beliefs.”